


I wish we met before they convinced you life is war

by SuchASeeweedBrain



Series: RNM One Shots [6]
Category: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)
Genre: M/M, Teenage Malex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-01
Updated: 2019-06-01
Packaged: 2020-04-05 21:01:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19048327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SuchASeeweedBrain/pseuds/SuchASeeweedBrain
Summary: Listening to the musical Heathers while thinking about Malex leads to a one shot about Alex giving in to his dark-side and Michael pulling him out of it.Build around the line: I wish we met before they convinced you life is war





	I wish we met before they convinced you life is war

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not sure what this is. I wrote this in an hour late last night while my broken wrist kept me awake. I posted this on my tumblr last night and then I fell asleep.

Alex was a fighter. As much as he liked to think he was weak, Michael knew he wasn't. He was so brave. The bravest. That was probably why it hurt so much to watch him struggle. Despite his bravery, that bitch called Fate just wouldn't let him be. He saw how Alex's shoulders hunched a little more every day. He saw the bruises, even when Alex tried to hide them. He saw the fight in Alex's eyes dim a little every time Valenti would lash out at him. Michael wanted to protect.

But he didn't. He just watched. He watched as the softness disappeared from Alex's face, as the kindness bled from his eyes. He watched as Alex started fighting back with a fury that high school bullies didn't deserve. With practiced strikes aimed for weak spots. Broken noses, strikes to the solar plexus, he went for eyes, throats and knees.

The football players would never admit to it, but Michael could smell their fear. They were afraid of him. Afraid of the seemingly unlimited supply of rage. The anger that burned so hot it went cold.

In hindsight, Michael shouldn't have taken the only black guitar in the music room. He should have known. When the instrument was snatched from his hands by hands with black fingernails, Michael was expecting that the next image of those hands would be them coming for his throat. They didn't.

'What the hell do you think you're doing?' Manes snapped, he was in his regular black hoodie armour.

'Sorry, I didn't realize it was yours.' Michael said quickly. He wasn't necessarily afraid Alex would hurt him. He seemed pretty intent on only hurting those that "deserved it", Michael just hoped that he hadn't just added himself to that list. Alex watched him with a clenched jaw and narrowed eyes, searching for the lie.

'Are you really living in your truck?' The question surprised him. Alex's eyes, lined with dark pencil, daring you to say something, flickered over Michael's appearance.

'That's none of your business.' Michael snapped. Alex raised a single eyebrow at him, and oh right, there was the infuriating part where Michael thought he was really hot. He wasn't supposed to. Guys fighting wasn't supposed to be attractive, that's not who Michael was, but with this guy. Damn.

'Alright. Sorry.' Michael blinked at him.

'Did- did you just apologize to me?' Michael asked. Alex just shrugged.

'Yeah, I shouldn't ask questions like that. It's rude.' Alex said, and Michael was gaping at him now.

'You beat people up on a daily basis, and you care about what questions are  _rude_?'

'What makes you think I get into fight's every day?' Alex asked, he set the guitar against the side of Michael's truck and stepped closer. Michael shifted, those slim, long fingered hands were closer to him now, within strangle reach.

'You have new bruises every day.' Michael said, his voice already sounded like he was being strangled. Great.

'Have you been watching me?' Alex asked, suddenly a smirk on his face that made Michael shift out of a reason other than fear.

'Maybe.' Michael admitted, Alex actually grinned so widely Michael saw a flash of teeth. Teeth that immediately made him think of a predator. A flash of white in the darkness as the only warning before an attack.

'Are you scared of me?' Alex asked, stepping between Michael's legs. He set one hand on his thigh. Michael swallowed.

'No.' It wasn't even a lie. He didn't think Alex would hurt him, not unprovoked. If he just played his cards right-

'Why is your heart racing?'

'I don't know.' That was a lie. He knew why his heart was racing. He'd never been this close to Alex before. It was a strange sensation, wanting to be this close to something that screamed danger. Someone he'd seen take on three guys at once and walk away bloody but victorious, showing bloody teeth with a vicious grin.

'Do you want to kiss me?' The answer was surprisingly easy.

'Yes.'

They fell into their  _thing_. It was all-consuming, overwhelming and magnetic, cosmic. Around Alex he felt like he could do anything, be anyone, beat anyone. He felt powerful and  _alive_  and awake. He saw glimpses if who Alex had been before he gave in to his darkness. Before he let himself go.

It was his father's darkness, he explained. His mom left when he was a kid. She couldn't handle being around them anymore. Around his father. But she had left him. He had never wanted to be like his father, but he was so tired of being everyone's punching bag. The assholes at school, his brothers, his father. He was done. So he let go. Let go of his tight control, and started fighting back, and then hitting first.

Michael didn't realize just how deep Alex had fallen down the dark hole, not until Alex sat him down one night. They were in his family's tool-shed, a regular meet up spot for them, and Alex grabbed a box from underneath one of the storage boxes. He opened it, and Michael's blood ran cold. Something it had never done around Alex before. The box contained a gun.

'What the hell, Alex?' Michael hissed. 'Why the fuck do you have a gun?'

'It's time to make him pay, Michael. He can't hurt you like this, he needs to learn his lesson somehow.' Alex said, one hand on the gun, the other brushing past Michael's bruised cheek. Michael was cradling his broken hand against his chest.

'Then let's go to the police!' Michael said desperately. 'You can't shoot your father, you can't shoot anyone, you'll go to prison Alex.'

'This is war, Michael. We don't take prisoners.' Alex said and Michael was startled to find he sounded just like his father.

'Please, Alex. Just put the gun away. We are both hurt and scared, let's just take some time to calm down, let's get out of this town. Let's just go.' Michael pleaded, he put his good hand over Alex's where it was resting on the gun. 'We're not at war. We're kids. Can't we be seventeen?'

'He's made that impossible.'

'Alex-'

'What? What do you want from me?' Alex asked, the desperation in Alex's voice gave him hope.

'I wish your mother had been a little stronger, I wish she'd stayed around. I wish your dad was a better man, I wish adults understood. **I wish we met before they convinced you life was war.** I wish you'd come with me.' Michael fought his tears, this was a line he would not, could not cross. If Alex did this, he was done-

'Okay.' All the fury and coldness had disappeared from Alex's voice. When Michael looked up, he looked younger than Michael ever remembered him looking. 'I'm sorry.'

'We're damaged, Alex. Really damaged, but that doesn't mean we get to choose who lives or dies. We've been through so much shit. We've lost so much, please, let's just go. Don't make me choose, please?' Michael hadn't meant to beg. Alex looked stricken. He'd taken his hand off the gun and reached out to Michael.

'I just wanted to protect you. He hurt you.' Alex said desperately fighting his tears.

'I know, but if you do this, he wins.' Michael said softly.

'How can he win if he's dead?'

'Because you'll be just like him.' Michael softly shook his head. Alex looked like someone slapped him.

'I already am.' He choked out.

'No you're not. I could never love you if you were.' Michael said fiercely. Alex wasn't that far down yet. He hadn't hurt anyone innocent.

'Okay. Let's go.' Alex said after a long pause in which he searched Michael's eyes for something.

'Yeah?'

'Yeah.' Michael smiled so widely his jaw hurt from it. They fled the tool-shed, grabbed whatever stuff they could, piled it in Michael's truck and left. The gun was left behind in the shed. They wouldn't need it.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, comments make me squeal with delight.


End file.
